Should we go after a former head coach or should we get an up and coming assistant? My thoughts on some of the names floating around:

1. Stephen Silas: Word is he's gonna get an interview, but no. No. As much as I like and respect Paul Silas and the work he and his son put in, after a season like we just had we need a complete regime change.

2. Nate McMillin: Solid experience and he's from NC. My main concern with Nate is that I feel he's underperformed with the talent he's had to work with.

3. Mike D'antoni: Would be fun to have an up-tempo team, but we need someone who will teach defense to these young guys. Plus it's hard to out-score your opponent when you don't have any scorers.

Nate McMillan, if he interviews and ultimately doesn't get the job, people will say its because he went to State and that makes Jordan a semi-traitor (even though he drafted Henderson, people won't care).

D'Antoni would be a great fit if you want to have a stellar first year, then lose the locker room and be back to the worst team in the league in 3 years.

Patrick Ewing, if there's a general consensus around the league that he'd be a good coach, then I'm all for it. But right now, I'm not hearing anything.

Stanvan...might be genius if he comes here. At least we'd be entertained.

Michael Malone, assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors, will interview Tuesday for the Charlotte Bobcats’ coaching vacancy. Yahoo! Sports first reported the story and a source confirmed it to the Observer.

“We don’t think it’s fair to comment on candidates or respond to rumors,” Charlotte president of basketball operations Rod Higgins said late Monday afternoon.

If the NBA were the NFL, Malone would be the must-have defensive coordinator linked with every head-coaching opening. Last season as the lead assistant in New Orleans, his defense was the league’s most improved.

This season he was the coach who diagrammed plays on the dry-erase board for Golden State first-year coach Mark Jackson. Malone has coached 10 seasons as an NBA assistant and is the son of long-time NBA coach Brendan Malone.

The Warriors were not surprised by Charlotte’s interest and will not be surprised when other suitors court him.

“When we first interviewed Michael Malone we knew he was a hot commodity,” Golden State general manager Bob Myers told the San Jose (Calif.) Mercury News.

The question might not be whether the Bobcats offer him the job, but whether he accepts it. Malone reportedly makes $750,000 a season and is the league’s highest-paid assistant.

I hope Malone is serious about the Bobcats, and I hope the Bobcats are serious about Malone.

The safe route always is to hire a former head coach. Fans love coaches with whom they’re familiar, especially if the coach is a celebrity. When the Panthers elected not to renew the contract of coach John Fox after the 2010 season, fans clamored for former Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher and former Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden. Each had some success, and each was famous.

I like the idea of identifying the next great coach and going after him. The move is gutsier and less expensive, although the latter might not apply to Malone.

Although Malone shares a first name with Bobcats owner Michael Jordan, they apparently don’t share a relationship. Whether Jordan is close to his team’s next coach is not terribly important.

What is important is that the new coach is a teacher and a leader, is confident enough to be patient and really wants this job.

Orlando Magic assistant Patrick Ewing will interview for the Charlotte Bobcats head-coaching job, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.
The Bobcats are working to set up a meeting with Ewing once the Magic are finished in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Ewing is a close friend of Charlotte owner Michael Jordan, and several sources believe the Hall of Fame center will turn out to be a serious candidate for the opening. Charlotte will make pitches to Golden State Warriors assistant Mike Malone and former Portland Trail Blazers coach Nate McMillan, but will likely hire its next coach from a pool of candidates like Ewing who have been less in demand for head-coaching jobs.
Ewing has worked eight seasons as an NBA assistant, including the past five on Stan Van Gundy’s staff with the Magic. Detroit Pistons general manager Joe Dumars interviewed Ewing for his franchise’s head-coaching job last spring and was impressed with him.
Charlotte officials flew to the Bay Area to meet with Malone on Tuesday. Malone is a coveted candidate who will likely be on the short list of most coaching openings this spring. He was the runner-up for the Warriors' job that went to Mark Jackson last year. The Warriors then made Malone the league's highest-paid assistant at $750,000 a year, hiring him to lead Jackson's staff.
Charlotte has to sell candidates like Malone and McMillan that Jordan is willing to make the financial commitment to build a winning organization. Charlotte will have to commit money to coaching salaries, as well as sell a plan to stock the franchise with talent.
Most of the better candidates will want to wait until the May 30 draft lottery to see if Charlotte will win the No. 1 overall pick to take Kentucky center Anthony Davis. The Bobcats parted ways with coach Paul Silas after a season that saw them finish with the lowest winning percentage (.106) in NBA history.

That bold statement bothers me. That's like saying "We want to continue our epic level of suck by hiring someone who has no clue what they're doing."